It’s no longer enough just to settle down for some glühwein after a day on the slopes. The private jet set are demanding as much style and sophistication from their wintersports holidays as they do from their beach breaks. Sophie Grove reports
I started out as an extreme skier,” says Rory Byrne, the brains behind the luxury travel company, Powder Byrne. “Now, it’s less a case of the moguls, elements and mega-steep slopes and more about style. People like me want great skiing and something extra.”
Powder Byrne is one of a growing number of companies that are crafting seamless itineraries for a new generation of wintersports buffs who are ultra-fussy down to the very last detail. “Our guys are ready for people with bottles of champagne in the sports shops to make sure they’re not just sitting around being ignored. We understand the alpine environment – and mountain people – even something as simple as negotiating a lunch reservation can be a delicate political balance.”
A ski holiday is no longer a trip to the slopes with some half-board dinner and a bit of yodelling thrown in. Even at the top end, to stay in a luxurious hotel, ski excellent pistes and eat good food is just not enough. Rory, who has six children of his own, was inspired to launch a bespoke course for kids. Powder Byrne’s Yeti ski school takes on children as young as four and teaches them the basics.
“It’s very hard to ski well and think of other things,” he says. “If you’re worrying about kids, you just can’t relax. That’s why our Yeti clubs have been quite so successful. There’s so much to think about – from the safety aspects of skiing with beginners to finding the right size boots – parents know that their little ones aren’t struggling at the back or not understanding an instructor.”
Another bespoke ski company, VIP Snowline, has a baby specialist on hand who can look after babies as old as three months, and they even deliver an ‘Infant Pack’ in advance, equipped with formulamilk and other essentials.
Slick childcare is just the beginning. The ski experience has become streamlined. From the 4x4s that whisk guests to and from the slopes to heli-pads and private ski lifts, the luxury skier has found a way to bypass the scrum.
Nor is the modern skier so inclined to make do with whatever is on offer to eat. In the Italian Dolomites, the village of San Cassiano, a Powder Byrne stalwart, has more Michelin-starred restaurants per square metre than anywhere in the world. At Piz La Illa – perched at the top of a precipitous run – the exquisite lobster pasta is only made more delicious by awe-inspiring views of the natural snow-bowl valley below. At the St Hubertus hotel, the impressive talents of super-chef, Norbert Niederkofler, have just seen him awarded a second Michelin star.
The ‘gastro-chalet’ is another key trend. One pioneer of the luxury market, Descent International, fly-in master-chefs to cook for their guests. This February the outfit plans to airlift two-Michelinstarred British chef Tom Aikens, to cater for guests in Switzerland. Pied à Terre’s prodigy has designed a unique menu for each occasion and will be cooking at Descent’s most exclusive chalets.
“We’re bespoking the experience at every possible point,” says Kit Harrison, the company’s CEO. “The market has become very sophisticated. It is much more about choice, feeling part of the experience. Descent has tried to second-guess trends and push them as far as we can – we try and think outside the perception of what is seen as possible.”
Even alcohol is becoming a forum for new companies to show where they are different. “Our members would be disappointed if they couldn’t get a Martini made exactly way as they could at home,” says Jonathan Downey, owner of London and New York’s Milk & Honey bars, who has set up a mountain outpost in Chamonix. “We’re not going to the Alps for fondue and charcuterie, or bad local wine and Kronenbourg. If you eat an Argentine steak or drink Napa Cabernet at home, you’ll want the same on the slopes.”
Urbane, modernist design is also making a mark. Even in the Alps avant-garde architecture is replacing traditional timber balconies and antlers. The recently renovated Hôtel des Dromonts in Avoriaz is a hive of retro Sixties style. Another lively spot, Lech, in Austria, is littered with trendy residences and home to the eclectic boutique Hotel Kristiania – a beguiling hybrid of antiques and cutting-edge furnishings.
“It’s no longer exciting to sleep in an alpine-clad apartment,” adds Jonathan Downey, “These days, Frette linen, interesting in-room amenities and DVDs are all a given.” Jonathan’s Club House is a magnificent Art Deco mansion built in 1927 refurbished to create seven ultra modern billets.
From the hip bunk beds in the more modest rooms to the stunning Myla Suite with its 3m-wide custom-built bed, the vibe is distinctly modern – an antidote to the fur coat clad culture of the past. It has all the exclusivity of Gstaad’s Eagle Club, with none of the frosty elitism that comes with it.
“We find people want to do their own thing,” Downey continues. “Because of the frequency that people go to the Alps the whole nature of skiing has changed. Our crowd is in the office on a Thursday checking the snow forecast, and if it’s looking good, they’re off for the weekend. They’ll take their Blackberries and work from the lifts. They get called ‘weekend warriors’. They’ll transform into mountain gods and perform extreme sports for the weekend and then go back to corporate jobs.”
Another property where a chocolate-box exterior belies an ultra-hip interior is Ferme de Moudon in Les Gets. The converted 17th-century chapel was a finalist in the Design and Decoration Awards and even featured in Grand Designs Abroad, for British TV station Channel 4. Here, ancient timbers support the innovations of designers like Christian Liaigre and Andrew Martin.
It’s not just the décor that is changing. The very fabric of the modern ski experience has become more potent. “Overall, we’ve seen that people have more money to spend and less time to do it,” Byrne continues. “These days we only really offer five-star services. And, at the same time we see hardly any two-week trips.”
Sir Richard Branson, innovative founder of Virgin Atlantic, is about to take the trend further by opening one of the most luxurious mountain hideaways known to man, The Lodge in Verbier. The 18-person chalet comes with a 24-hour chauffeur and as much champagne and fine wine as you can drink – and it costs a cool £60,000 a week in peak season. Branson expects it to be fully booked most of the time.
Thrill-seekers are keen to throw themselves into their holidays. Quite literally. Heli-skiing – once the preserve of the true powder-hound – is now a popular option. Modern skiers want to pack everything in. The luxury concierge company, Quintessentially, has had a flurry of requests from members for a pre-ski fitness package that prepares them for the extreme conditions and physical intensity of their trip. In a specialist gym in Jubilee Place in London, clients spend three weeks training at altitude in a hypoxic chamber. After a course of ski-specific exercise, nutritional consultations and sports massage they can take to the most extreme slopes without the slightest hesitation.
“We have a have a ski-safari that takes people heli-skiing in three countries one trip,” says Tom Marchant, founder of Black Tomato, a company that crafts some of the most obscure, innovative itineraries for its customers. “It is a misnomer that people want to sit around doing nothing on holiday. People want to make the absolute most out of the time they have. There is a sense of serial trepidation. People are looking for the unique and personal.” Whether it’s climbing ice waterfalls on Mont Blanc or sipping your favourite Martini at 3,000m, winter sports have reached new dizzying new heights of sophistication.
APPARTHOTEL ZURBRIGGEN
Zermatt, Switzerland
At the bottom of the Klein Matterhorn lift base in Zermatt, this timber-clad structure was designed by the artist and entrepreneur, Heinz Julen. Its sleek lines and sun-drenched rooms are packed full of idiosyncratic furnishings – log-fires set inside a clinical glass cubes and a glass-sided swimming pool. On the ground floor a solarium, sauna, outside shower and aromatherapy ‘dream shower’ provide a glorious retreat. And if you like this - you’ll
love Julen’s gallery-come-bar Vermissage or the even-newer Viewhouse nearby.
www.zurbriggen.ch
CHALET EUGENIA
Klosters, Switzerland
With beautiful carved antique panelling and deliciously modern fixtures, Eugenia has the best of both worlds. It is also among the priciest billets in the Alps. Guests are positively steeped in vintage Perrier Jouët and teams of snap-to-it staff cater for every whim. There are roaring fires in every room, vast oak-beamed ceilings, antique furniture and stupendous views of the summit of the Gotschna. From £24,610 (low season) to £45,815 (high season).
www.descent.co.uk
THE CLUBHOUSE
Chamonix, France
Want mulled wine and dirndl-clad waitresses? Welcome to the wrong place! The Clubhouse is Manhattan in the Alps, a cool but comfortable members’ bar and hotel serving top-quality cocktails and wines in a chilled-out atmosphere. It’s also in the heart of one of the world’s greatest ski areas.
www.clubhouse.fr
CHALET KATHARINA
St Anton, Austria
Here, a nutritionally balanced menu, cooked by a team of personal chefs, helps navigate the effects of Anton’s famous nightlife and challenging runs. With its cavernous, sunny atrium and white, minimal décor this chalet is nothing short of breathtaking. Chalet Katharina sleeps 16-20 people and costs from between £20,065-£50,880.
www.seasonsinstyle.com
HOTEL JOSL
Obergurgl, Austria
This bold, modernist construction would make Mondrian proud. Primary colours and minimalist wood-burning stoves make the Josl’s über-clean lines somehow cosy. Even though the vibe is young and the scene is relatively budget, the Josl makes up for it in views and there is a glorious, modernist sun-deck and sauna to bask on.
www.josl.at
CHALET CHAMOIS
Courchevel, France
Nestled in the hushed, secluded hamlet of Belvédère this pad sleeps 14 guests. A flotilla of staff is on hand to tend to the small, but crucial, touches like Egyptian cotton sheets, champagne and canapés at every possible opportunity. Fresh flowers and newspapers are all delivered daily. And the Michelin-anointed delights of Courchevel are only a few chauffer-driven minutes away.
www.mrandmrssmith.com